Your First 10 Cards
Use this as a loose guide to help you know what cards you should be opening first. Even better if you can refer them to a player 2 (except their second Capital One and any Chase business card after they have opened one. You won’t earn a referral bonus for any of them after the first referral so use my affiliate links for those :)). You’ll earn points quicker and reach a million points before you know it.
I didn’t want to make a timeline with actual months because this will depend on your budget, spending and how quickly you hit the minimum spend. And if you’re wanting something like the Southwest Companion Pass, obviously adjust your timing and what cards you open accordingly.
3 months is a good rule of thumb for your own card applications but you can make exceptions as needed. If you have a player 2, you might be alternating cards every 45 days.
***Important*** Capital One has a new rule where you want to open the Venture card first, and then the Venture X six months later. If you open the Venture X, you will have to wait 4 years before you are eligible for the Venture card. It’s a family hierarchy rule so Venture and then Venture X if you want them both.
And now there’s a new rule out about once in a lifetime bonus for the Ink Business Cards. This is brand new so still gathering data if you can open each of them once and never again, or if it’s just one of them and no bonus points for the others. This is bad news, but you supposedly will get a pop up telling you that you won’t earn another bonus before you hit submit on the application.
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What do you do after you’ve opened the cards and gotten all the bonus points and used them. How do you continue getting the bonus points? Do you close and then re open cards? Thanks
Yes, on the cards that allow you to open them again after so many years, I do that again. I have yet to get all the bonus points on every card though. After the first 10 cards, there’s so many more airline and hotel cards.
Any value to opening chase freedom unlimited or freedom flex considering the 5/24 rule before opening others? Thank you!
I would not let those take some of your first 5/24 spots. All these other cards have better sign up bonuses.
My Player #2 tried to open his venture X recently and was told he has too high of a credit limit. He has low balance, maybe $1000, but his combined limit from his credit cards is too high so that they declined his application. Is this normal? And what then? Should he call his CC companies and ask them to lower the credit limit on his cards?
Yes, I periodically go lowering my credit limits because at some point they will be too high and the banks will deny you. But that is also what boosts your credit score up so don’t go dropping every single one.